Synthetic fiber blend fabric and clothes

ABSTRACT

A synthetic fiber blend fabric is disclosed. The synthetic fiber blend fabric is a woven fabric that is made from blended yarns each obtained by mix spinning of three or more kinds of fibers including wool fibers, polyester fibers, and acrylic fibers, or is a woven fabric mainly consisting of the blended yarns. Each of the blended yarns contains the three or more kinds of fibers blended therein so as to be approximately uniformly distributed at a prescribed blending ratio along a longitudinal direction of the blended yarn. The blended yarn has a total content of the wool fibers, the polyester fibers, and the acrylic fibers of 90 mass % or more and 100 mass % or less. The acrylic fibers have a fineness of 0.5 dtex or more and 1.4 dtex or less.

This application is the U.S. National Phase of PCT/JP2019/033105, filedAug. 23, 2019, which claims priority to Japanese Patent Application No.2018-157838, filed Aug. 24, 2018. Both of those applications areincorporated by reference herein in their entireties.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a fabric (hereinafter, referred to as a“synthetic fiber blend fabric”) containing synthetic fibers, and clothesobtained using the synthetic fiber blend fabric as a clothing fabric.

BACKGROUND ART

One hundred-mass-percent-wool clothing fabrics have good texture anddeep color impression as appearance, give sensation of elegance, andhave stereoscopic effect and depth impression while having smoothexpression of the fabric. Therefore, men's clothing fabrics or women'sclothing fabrics configured to include a 100-mass %-wool clothing fabricare recognized as high-class items with a high commercial value.Clothing fabrics that include hard twist yarns containing fine woolfibers further have a sense of higher class and are recognized as havinga higher commercial value.

Generally, the good texture of the men's clothing fabrics and the likerefers to having a good drape property, good repulsive feeling, andunique touch. The drape property is a property of the clothing fabric tosmoothly wrap an object or a body to be wrapped, along the shapethereof. The repulsive feeling is a property of the fabric to springback into an original shape when lightly held so as to be wrapped in thepalm of hand and then released by opening the hand. The unique touch istouch that is non-sticky, dry, and comfortable while giving silkysensation specific to wool. Thus, the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabricshave a sense of high class in terms of making affective appeals such asgood texture and deep color impression and are recognized as having ahigh commercial value.

A clothing fabric is, when worn, subjected to external force, resultingin flexural deformation and deformation such as tensile deformation orshear deformation. The good drape property can be obtained when theclothing fabric has, in addition to an appropriate initial flexuralrigidity, a low initial tensile rigidity (corresponding to Young'smodulus) and a low initial shear rigidity. Further, the good repulsivefeeling can be obtained when the clothing fabric has good elasticrecovery from each of initial flexural deformation, initial tensiledeformation, and initial shear deformation. This fact can be moreunderstandable, for example, by comparing the clothing fabric and paperthat have the same flexural rigidity.

Meanwhile, the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics have a problem of easilygenerating wrinkles when left wet with water and dried or when washedwith a domestic washing machine and dried. In addition, since the rawmaterial wool is more expensive than synthetic fibers, the 100-mass%-wool clothing fabrics are expensive. Therefore, men's clothing fabricsand the like have been attempted to be produced using blended yarns eachobtained by mix spinning of wool fibers and synthetic fibers. The mixspinning is performing spinning while blending fibers that havedifferent kinds of raw materials. The blended yarns are yarns eachobtained by spinning of blended different kinds of fibers. The problemsinvolving washability and wrinkles generated after the fabric is wet areoften solved by use of the blended yarns.

BRIEF SUMMARY

A synthetic fiber blend clothing fabric made from conventional blendedyarns, however, has a problem of impairing the high-class texturespecific to the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics due to blending ofsynthetic fibers in the blended yarns. The synthetic fiber blendclothing fabric that is made from blended yarns each obtained by mixspinning of wool fibers and polyester fibers often has a defect inrepulsive feeling. The synthetic fiber blend clothing fabric that ismade from blended yarns each obtained by mix spinning of wool fibers andacrylic fibers is easily deteriorated in stiffness or anti-drapestiffness by a finishing step during production or by washing with adomestic washing machine because the acrylic fibers are easilyplastically deformed by heat or external force. A clothing fabric thatincludes hard twist yarns containing fine wool fibers has a problem ofgenerating a change in dimension or surface appearance caused by beingwet with water or by high humidity (for example, vapor or ironing duringsewing).

Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Application Publication No. S59-137930describes a synthetic fiber blend clothing fabric that is made fromblended yarns of three kinds of fibers, i.e., wool fibers, polyesterfibers, and acrylic fibers. Japanese Unexamined Utility ModelApplication Publication No. S59-137930, however, neither refers to norsuggests a possibility of obtaining the high-class texture specific tothe 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics by using these blended yarns.

In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is toprovide a synthetic fiber blend fabric that has texture with a sense ofhigh class comparable to 100-mass %-wool products, that is less likelyto generate wrinkles even when dried after being wet with water orwashed with a domestic washing machine, and that is less likely to bedeteriorated in stiffness or anti-drape stiffness even when steamed, andto provide clothes obtained using this fabric as a clothing fabric.

In order to attain the above object, a synthetic fiber blend fabricaccording to an aspect of the present invention is a woven fabric thatis made from blended yarns each obtained by mix spinning of three ormore kinds of fibers including wool fibers, polyester fibers, andacrylic fibers, or is a woven fabric including mainly the blended yarns,each of the blended yarns containing the three or more kinds of fibersblended therein so as to be approximately uniformly distributed at aprescribed blending ratio along a longitudinal direction of the blendedyarn, the blended yarn having a total content of the wool fibers, thepolyester fibers, and the acrylic fibers of 90 mass % or more and 100mass % or less, and the acrylic fibers having a fineness of 0.5 dtex ormore and 1.4 dtex or less.

In the synthetic fiber blend fabric according to another aspect of thepresent invention, each of the blended yarns can have a content of thewool fibers of 30 mass % or more and 70 mass % or less, a content of thepolyester fibers of 20 mass % or more and 50 mass % or less, and acontent of the acrylic fibers of 10 mass % or more and 30 mass % orless.

In the synthetic fiber blend fabric according to another aspect of thepresent invention, each of the blended yarns can be a two ply yarn andhave a metric count of 2/36 to 2/140.

Alternatively, in the synthetic fiber blend fabric according to anotheraspect of the present invention, each of the blended yarns can be a twoply yarn, have a metric count of 2/36 to 2/140, have a first twistcoefficient (defined by T/√N in which T represents a first twist numberand N represents a metric count) of 80 or more and 120 or less, have afinal twist number of 80% or more and 130% or less of the first twistnumber, and have a same direction of final twists as a direction offirst twists.

Clothes according to an aspect of the present invention include afabric, the fabric being formed of the synthetic fiber blend fabricaccording to the present invention or including the synthetic fiberblend fabric.

Through the synthetic fiber blend fabric according to the presentinvention, provided is a fabric having texture with a sense of highclass comparable to 100-mass %-wool products because the fabric isproduced using blended yarns each obtained by mix spinning of three ormore kinds of fibers including wool fibers, polyester fibers and acrylicfibers that have an average fineness of 0.5 dtex or more and 1.4 dtex orless and are extra-fine. This synthetic fiber blend fabric that containsnot only the wool fibers but also the polyester fibers and the acrylicfibers is less likely to generate wrinkles even when dried after beingwet with water or washed with a domestic washing machine. This syntheticfiber blend fabric is a woven fabric obtained using the blended yarns ineach of which the polyester fibers and the extra-fine (micro) acrylicfibers are blended, and is therefore a fabric having good repulsivefeeling. The acrylic fibers that are easily plastically deformed by heator external force are configured to be extra-fine, and therefore hardlyaffects stiffness and anti-drape stiffness of the synthetic fiber blendfabric even when affected by heat or external force.

That is, the synthetic fiber blend fabric according to the presentinvention makes it possible to achieve both realization of a high-valueadding property involving affectiveness such as texture and depth ofcolor that are specific to wool clothing fabrics and stabilization offunctional properties (aspect of physical properties) (being less likelyto generate wrinkles even when dried after being wet with water orwashed with a domestic washing machine). In addition, regular woolfibers are usable without use of fine wool fibers, leading to reductionin production costs, and the fabric having a sense of high class can beprovided at low costs.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 shows a weave diagram of one exemplary woven fabric used as asynthetic fiber blend fabric according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION <Synthetic Fiber Blend Fabric>

A synthetic fiber blend fabric (hereinafter, also referred to as “thepresent fabric”) according to the present invention is a woven fabricthat is made from blended yarns each obtained by mix spinning of threeor more kinds of fibers including wool fibers, polyester fibers, andacrylic fibers, or is a woven fabric configured to include mainly theblended yarns. The present fabric is used for production of mainlyclothes and the like. In the present fabric, the phrase “include mainly”means that the present fabric has a content of the blended yarns of 70mass % or more. In the present fabric or the blended yarns, the word“content” means, for example, when each of the blended yarns containstwo or more kinds of polyester fibers, the total content of the two ormore kinds of polyester fibers. The values of the content described inthe present specification correspond to values of the mixing ratio basedon corrected weight that are obtained in conformity with JIS L 1030-2:2012. The fineness described in the present specification representsaverage fineness when the measured values are varied. The twist numberdescribed in the present specification means a twist number per 1 munless otherwise specified.

Examples of the polyester fibers used in the present fabric includepolyethylene terephthalate fibers, polybutylene terephthalate fibers,and copolymerized polyester fibers.

Examples of the acrylic fibers used in the present fabric includegeneral acrylic fibers containing polyacrylonitrile. Alternatively, theacrylic fibers can be, for example, a copolymerized polymer ofacrylonitrile, and vinyl chloride or vinylidene chloride. In thiscopolymerized polymer, the mass of the constitutional unit derived fromthe acrylonitrile accounts for, for example, 35 mass % or more and 85mass % or less. The acrylic fibers used in the present fabric is acrylicfibers (hereinafter, referred to as “extra-fine AC fibers”) having afineness of 0.5 dtex or more and 1.4 dtex or less. If the acrylic fibershave a fineness of less than 0.5 dtex, trouble is easily generated in aspinning step of the production process due to the excessively smallfiber diameter. If the acrylic fibers have a fineness of more than 1.4dtex, it is difficult for the clothing fabric to obtain a good elasticrecovery property when recovering from deformation such as flexuraldeformation, due to the excessively large fiber diameter of the acrylicfibers or some other reason, and a fabric having good texture cannotthus be obtained.

The configuration of the present fabric described above can give aclothing fabric having good texture as, for example, a men's clothingfabric or a women's clothing fabric. In the present fabric that is madefrom blended yarns (hereinafter, also referred to as “the presentblended yarns)” each obtained by mix spinning of three or more kinds offibers including wool fibers, polyester fibers, and extra-fine ACfibers, or that is configured to include mainly the present blendedyarns, a reason why the good texture can be obtained is not clear, butis presumed as follows.

A polyester fiber is a fiber singly having by itself a good elasticrecovery property from flexural deformation. A fabric made using blendedyarns each obtained by mix spinning of wool fibers and polyester fibersis generally improved in stiffness and is thus sometimes washable with adomestic washing machine, but is inferior to 100-mass %-wool fabrics inrepulsive feeling (elastic recovery property from deformation such asflexural deformation). A reason for this fact is considered to be thatthe fabric is not a single fiber, but a fiber assembly to make polyesterfibers have a large friction therebetween when the fabric recoveringfrom deformation such as flexural deformation, and the polyester fibersin the fabric are thus prevented from elastically recovering fromdeformation such as flexural deformation. In the present fabric,however, extra-fine AC fibers are interposed between polyester fibersblended in the present blended yarns, and therefore the friction betweenpolyester fibers is considered to be reduced by these extra-fine ACfibers. Thus, it is considered that the present fabric is less likely tobe prevented from elastically recovering from deformation such asflexural deformation and can obtain a good elastic recovery propertywhen recovering from deformation such as flexural deformation.

Further, in general production of a 100-mass %-wool fabric, wool fibersare considered to be swollen to increase the diameter thereof during afinishing process, and reduce the fiber diameter without changing thedisposition of the fibers to generate gaps between wool fibers whendried in the following drying step. Therefore, the 100-mass %-woolfabric is assumed to reduce the friction between wool fibers whenrecovering from deformation such as flexural deformation, and to thusreduce the degree of being prevented from elastically recovering fromdeformation such as flexural deformation. Here, the extra-fine AC fibersblended in the present blended yarns of the present fabric are presumedto have the same action as the gaps between fibers in the 100-mass%-wool fabric. Meanwhile, the acrylic fibers having a fineness of morethan 1.4 dtex make the fabric less likely to obtain a good elasticrecovery property when recovering from deformation such as flexuraldeformation, due to difficulty exhibiting the action of reducing thefriction between polyester fibers or some other reason. That is, theinventor of the present application has formulated a hypothesis thateven a woven fabric containing synthetic fibers as the present fabriccan exhibit, by use of the present blended yarns containing theextra-fine AC fibers blended therein, an action similar to the formationof gaps attained through swelling and drying that is described aboveregarding the 100-mass %-wool fabric.

On the basis of the hypothesis, the inventor of the present applicationmade samples of the present blended yarns in which wool fibers,extra-fine AC fibers, and polyester fibers originally having anexcellent elastic recovery property as a material are blended at anappropriate blending ratio, and has completed the present invention.Blending the polyester fibers in the present blended yarns allows thepresent fabric to solve the problem that the clothing fabric generatesnoticeable wrinkles when dried after being wet by rain or the like, andto make the clothing fabric washable with a domestic washing machine.The present invention has made it possible to achieve, even withoutusing expensive fine wool fibers but using regular wool fibers, bothrealization of a high-value adding property involving affectiveness suchas texture and depth of color that are specific to 100-mass %-woolclothing fabrics and stabilization of functional properties (aspect ofphysical properties) (washing resistance and wrinkle resistance), andtherefore the present invention also leads to reduction of raw materialcosts.

After a great deal of earnest consideration using the present blendedyarns, the inventor of the present application has found that from theview point of making the high-value adding property highly realizable,it is preferred to use, in the present fabric, the present blended yarnstwisted harder than conventional yarns and further preferred to use, asthe hard twisted present blended yarns (hard twist yarns), two ply yarnsfinal-twisted in the same direction as the direction of first twists.While, a clothing fabric that includes hard twist yarns containing finewool fibers has a problem of generating a change in dimension or surfaceappearance caused by high humidity (for example, vapor or ironing duringsewing). In addition, the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics that includehard twist yarns make it possible to achieve both appropriate silkysensation and dry sensation to some degree but cannot avoid coarseroughness sensation on the surface of the clothing fabrics. In contrast,the present fabric that includes the present blended yarns hard-twistedas described above can obtain good texture without giving coarseroughness sensation on the surface of the fabric while achieving bothappropriate silky sensation and dry sensation.

The extra-fine AC fibers are extra-fine and have a small flexuralstiffness, and makes therefore a small contribution to the flexuralrigidity in the entire present fabric. Therefore, even when deformed ina finishing step of the production of the present fabric or in washingof the present fabric, the extra-fine AC fibers have a small influenceon the flexural rigidity and the repulsive feeling in the entire presentfabric. In addition to this reason, the present fabric is not a knittedfabric but a woven fabric and therefore easily maintains good repulsivefeeling and anti-drape stiffness.

When having a content of the present blended yarns of 70 mass % or moreand less than 100 mass %, the present fabric can be a woven fabricconfigured to include, together with the present blended yarns, otheryarns in a content within the range of more than 0 mass % and 30 mass %or less, as long as the object of the present invention is contradicted.Examples of fibers constituting the other yarns include syntheticfibers, regenerated fibers, semisynthetic fibers, animal fibers, andplant fibers. Examples of the synthetic fibers include polyamide-basedfibers such as nylon fibers, polyolefin-based fibers such aspolypropylene fibers, and polyvinyl-based fibers. Examples of theregenerated fibers include rayon fibers. Examples of the animal fibersinclude wool fibers, fur fibers, and silk fibers. Examples of the plantfibers include cotton fibers and hemp fibers. The other yarns can be,for example, filament yarns each of which is made from one or more kindsof fibers selected from the group consisting of synthetic fibers,regenerated fibers, semisynthetic fibers, and silk fibers. The otheryarns can also be other blended yarns each formed by mix spinning of twoor more kinds of fibers selected from the fibers listed here withoutblending the extra-fine AC fibers.

From the viewpoint of allowing the present fabric to have a sense ofhigh class comparable to 100-mass %-wool products and making the presentfabric further less likely to generate wrinkles after washed and dried,the present fabric has a content of the present blended yarns ofpreferably 90 mass % or more, further preferably 95 mass % or more,further more preferably 100 mass %.

When each of the present blended yarns has an excessively small contentof the wool fibers, exploring the conditions of steps such as afinishing process for obtaining good texture could require substantialtime and effort. From the viewpoint of avoiding this burden, the presentblended yarn has a content of the wool fibers of preferably 30 mass % ormore. In view of the fabric that has washing resistance and is lesslikely to be affected by humidity such as being wet, the present blendedyarn has a content of the wool fibers of preferably 70 mass % or less,further preferably 50 mass % or less. The raw material costs of thepresent fabric can be reduced as the present blended yarn has a smallercontent of the wool fibers. Therefore, from the viewpoint of achievingboth reduction of the raw material costs and realization of the texturespecific to the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics, the present blendedyarn further preferably has a content of the wool fibers of 30 mass % ormore and 50 mass % or less.

Each of the present blended yarns has a content of the polyester fibersof preferably 20 mass % or more from the viewpoint of imparting asufficient anti-wrinkle property to the present fabric, and preferably50 mass % or less from the viewpoint of imparting sufficient repulsivefeeling to the present fabric. Each of the present blended yarns has acontent of the extra-fine AC fibers of preferably 10 mass % or more fromthe viewpoint of easily improving the repulsive feeling of the presentfabric, and preferably 30 mass % or less from the viewpoint of easilyimparting appropriate stiffness to the present fabric. As describedabove, from the viewpoint of allowing the present fabric to easilyrealize the texture specific to the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics,reducing the raw material costs, improving the repulsive feeling, andeasily imparting appropriate stiffness, the present blended yarn furthermore preferably has a content of the wool fibers of 30 mass % or moreand 70 mass % or less, a content of the polyester fibers of 20 mass % ormore and 50 mass % or less, and a content of the extra-fine AC fibers of10 mass % or more and 30 mass % or less.

The polyester fibers in the present blended yarns have a fineness ofpreferably 1.6 dtex or more from the viewpoint of imparting, to thepresent fabric, rigidity sufficient enough as a clothing fabric, andpreferably 3.3 dtex or less from the viewpoint of avoiding making thepresent fabric excessively firm as a clothing fabric. That is, from theviewpoint imparting appropriate firmness (stiffness) as a clothingfabric, the polyester fibers in the present blended yarns furtherpreferably have a fineness of 1.6 dtex or more and 3.3 dtex or less.

Either of the polyester fibers and the acrylic fibers in the presentblended yarns can be composite fibers. By being formed as the compositefibers, the polyester fibers and the acrylic fibers can have a propertyof easily fitting into the characteristics of the wool fibers.

The present blended yarns can have other fibers blended therein togetherwith the wool fibers, the polyester fibers, and the extra-fine ACfibers, as long as the object of the present invention is contradicted.In this case, each of the present blended yarns has a content of theother fibers of 10 mass % or less. For example, the present blended yarnpreferably has a content of the wool fibers of 30 mass % or more andless than 70 mass %, a content of the polyester fibers of 20 mass % ormore and 50 mass % or less, a content of the extra-fine AC fibers of 10mass % or more and 30 mass % or less, and a content of the other fibersof more than 0 mass % and 10 mass % or less. Examples of the fibersinclude synthetic fibers, regenerated fibers, semisynthetic fibers,animal fibers other than wool fibers, and plant fibers. Thus, use of thepresent blended yarns containing the other fibers blended therein is notprevented in the present fabric.

From the viewpoint of allowing the present fabric to realize texturewith a sense of high class comparable to 100-mass %-wool products, thethree or more kinds of fibers (wool fibers, polyester fibers, extra-fineAC fibers, and other fibers as necessary) are subjected to mix spinningso as to be approximately uniformly distributed at a prescribed blendingratio along a longitudinal direction of the present blended yarn to makethe present blended yarn. When the mix spinning is performed accordingto a usual method without operation of clearly changing the blendingratio during the mix spinning, the three or more kinds of fibers areblended so as to be approximately uniformly distributed at theprescribed blending ratio along the longitudinal direction of thepresent blended yarn. While, even when the mix spinning is performedaccording to a usual method, the present blended yarn obtained canunintentionally generate slight blending unevenness. The phrase“approximately uniformly” in the present blended yarn means that evenwhen generated, the slight blending unevenness is not contradictory tothe contents and the nature of the present invention and is thustolerated. For example, when three or more kinds of fibers havingdifferent colors are subjected to mix spinning according to a usualmethod to give a blended yarn and when the blended yarn has the entireappearance thereof simply looked at with the naked eye in a short timeand cannot be perceived as “clearly generating a change in color huealong the longitudinal direction of the blended yarn” in objective viewof, for example, a general consumer, the three or more kinds of fibersare blended so as to be approximately uniformly distributed at aprescribed blending ratio along the longitudinal direction of theblended yarn. Even when three or more kinds of fibers havingsubstantially the same color are subjected to mix spinning to give ablended yarn, the mix spinning can be performed in the same manneraccording to the usual method. Further, a spun yarn for weaving a wovenfabric is made using the present blended yarn. From the viewpoint ofeasy spinning, selection is preferably made such that the spun yarn(single yarn) here has a sectional average number of fibers of 30 ormore.

With the twist number of the present blended yarn (single yarn) definedas T (unit “T/m”) and the metric count as N, the twist coefficient isdefined by T/√N. From the viewpoint of easily imparting strength to thesingle yarn and easily imparting sufficient stiffness to the presentfabric, the present blended yarn (single yarn) is preferably twisted soas to have a twist coefficient of 80 or more. In addition, from theviewpoint of avoiding deterioration of texture as a result of coarsenesson the surface of the present fabric, the present blended yarn (singleyarn) is preferably twisted so as to have a twist coefficient of 120 orless. The direction of twists of the single yarn can be either a Z-twistor an S-twist.

The single yarn is preferably doubled and further twisted. The presentblended yarn (two ply yarn) obtained has a count indication (metriccount) of further preferably 2/36 to 2/140, further more preferably 2/70to 2/100 (here, the number “2” represents a two ply yarn) from theviewpoint of allowing the present fabric to easily satisfy a sensuoussense of high class, i.e., a fine clothing fabric being abundant in thesense of high class. A yarn having a finer count than described above islikely to be very expensive due to, for example, constraints of wool rawmaterials. The present blended yarn (two ply yarn) can be a yarnobtained by putting together two single yarns having different countindications and further twisting the two single yarns, as long as thepresent blended yarn has a count indication within these ranges.

From the viewpoint of allowing the present fabric to easily give drysensation on the surface thereof, the present blended yarn (two plyyarn) preferably has a same direction of final twists as a direction offirst twists (Z-Z twists or S-S twists). In this case, the final twistnumber is preferably 80% or more of the first twist number. While, whenthe final twist number is lower than 80% of the first twist number, theappearance sometimes has color impression insufficient in stereoscopiceffect and depth impression. Meanwhile, from the viewpoint of avoidinglosing appropriate silky sensation as a result of having remarkableroughness on the surface of the fabric to become coarse, the final twistnumber is preferably 130% or less of the first twist number. Regardingthe present blended yarn (two ply yarn) obtained by putting together twosingle yarns having different count indications and twisting the twosingle yarns, the average value of the twist numbers of the single yarnsis regarded as the first twist number of the blended yarn (two plyyarn). In the twist configuration described above, when the direction offirst twists is different from the direction of final twists, the twists(first twists) of the single yarns are got back by the final twists toweaken tightness of the yarn. When the direction of first twists is thesame as the direction of final twists, the tightness of the yarn isenhanced compared to the state of the single yarn. In the presentinvention, this tightness in the two ply yarn structure has been foundto be preferable in combination with the two ply yarn structure toobtain dry and good texture.

In the present fabric, use of the present blended yarns each obtained byhard twisting with the twist number set in the range described above cangive a woven fabric that is dry, gives appropriate silky sensationwithout sticky sensation, and has further good texture and depth ofcolor that are specific to wool clothing fabrics. This depth of color isconsidered to be obtained by the hard twists described above and the useof the extra-fine AC fibers. In addition, the present fabric hardly hasa problem of generating a change in dimension or surface appearancecaused by moistness or high humidity (for example, vapor or ironingduring sewing).

The present fabric is preferably a woven fabric that is woven using thepresent blended yarns (two ply yarns) obtained by hard twisting in theaspect described above. The weave of the woven fabric can be selectedfrom three foundation weaves and derivative weaves thereof. That is, theweave is selected from the group consisting of general three foundationweaves, i.e., a plain weave, a twill weave, and a sateen weave, orselected from any derivative weaves to obtain an appropriate weaveaccording to, for example, application of the final product (such asclothes). A cover factor K of a woven fabric is represented by thefollowing mathematical formula. The present fabric preferably has acover factor K represented by the following mathematical formula of 6 ormore and 13 or less, from the viewpoint of easy impartation ofappropriate firmness (stiffness) as a clothing fabric and an excellentweaving property.

K=(K ₁ +K ₂)/2  [Mathematical 1]

-   -   K₁: weave density of warp (yarns/2.54 cm)/√metric count of warp        (inverse of linear density of yarn (g/m))    -   K₂: weave density of weft (yarns/2.54 cm)/√metric count of weft        (inverse of linear density of yarn (g/m))

The present fabric is preferably used as a men's clothing fabric or awomen's clothing fabric, from the viewpoint of having texture with asense of high class comparable to 100-mass %-wool products regardless ofthe fact that the raw material costs of the present fabric aresuppressed lower than those of the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics. Thepresent fabric is preferably used as a clothing fabric for clothes usedmainly in spring or summer, from the viewpoint of having dry touch.

<Clothes>

Clothes according to the present invention can be obtained using thepresent fabric described above. That is, the clothes according to thepresent invention are clothes configured to include the synthetic fiberblend fabric according to the present invention. The clothes are Westerclothes (fabric to be worn). Examples of the clothes include a top,trousers, a skirt, a dress, a business suit, a uniform, and outerwear.

Additionally, the present invention can be implemented in aspects withvarious modifications, corrections, or transformations made on the basisof knowledge of a person skilled in the art in the range not departingfrom the spirit of the present invention. Further, the present inventioncan be implemented in a form of replacing any of the matters specifyingthe invention with another technique in the range generating anidentical action or effect.

EXAMPLES <Spinning Step>

In each of Examples 1 and 2 and Comparative Example 1 described below,the following spinning step was performed to produce a blended yarn (twoply yarn). Regarding wool fibers and polyester fibers, dyed tops thereofeach produced by a usual method were used. Regarding extra-fine ACfibers, a tow was formed into a sliver with a converter and thereaftermade into a top, which was subjected to top dyeing to give a dyed top,and the dyed top thus obtained was used. Thereafter, these three kindsof dyed tops were subjected to mix spinning (mixing and fine spinning bya usual worsted spinning step) to give a blended yarn (single yarn), andthis blended yarn (single yarn) was doubled and subjected to twisting togive a blended yarn (two ply yarn). The spinning step described here is,in every procedure, performed by a usual method and is therefore notdescribed.

Example 1

As the wool fibers, fibers having a grade with a fiber diameter of 18.5μm were prepared. As the polyester fibers, polyethylene terephthalatestaple fibers having a fineness of 2.2 dtex were prepared. As theextra-fine AC fibers, an acrylic-fiber tow having a fineness of 1.1 dtexwas prepared. With these kinds of fibers used as raw materials, thespinning step described above was performed for mix spinning at ablending ratio of a content of the wool fibers of 35 mass %, a contentof the polyester fibers of 40 mass %, and a content of the extra-fine ACfibers of 25 mass %, to give a blended yarn (single yarn) having ametric count of 1/80 and a Z-twist number of 1,000 T/m. This single yarnwas doubled and was further subjected to Z-twisting of 1,100 twists per1 m (final Z-twist number of 1,100 T/m) to give a blended yarn (two plyyarn). Using this blended yarn (two ply yarn), weaving was performedaccording to a weave diagram illustrated in FIG. 1 and a finishingprocess was performed on the woven fabric by a usual method to give afabric according to Example 1. The fabric according to Example 1 had abasis weight of 211 g/m², a warp density of 91 yarns/2.54 cm, and a weftdensity of 77 yarns/2.54 cm.

Example 2

The mix spinning was performed with the same material and at the sameblending ratio (the same content of each kind of fibers in blended yarn)as in Example 1 to give a blended yarn (single yarn) having a metriccount of 1/80 (first S-twist number of 1,000 T/m). This blended yarn(single yarn) was doubled and was subjected to S-twisting of 1,100twists per 1 m (final S-twist number of 1,100 T/m). Using the obtainedblended yarn (two ply yarn), a fabric was woven in the same manner as inExample 1 to give a fabric according to Example 2.

The fabric obtained in each of Examples 1 and 2 had good repulsivefeeling and good texture equivalent to 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics.In addition, these fabrics had non-sticky, dry, and comfortable touchwhile having, as in the touch specific to the 100-mass %-wool clothingfabrics, the specific silky sensation on the surface thereof, and haddepth of color equivalent to the depth of color specific to the 100-mass%-wool clothing fabrics. Therefore, the fabric obtained in each ofExamples 1 and 2 was suitable as a spring or summer men's or women'sclothing fabric. These fabrics had no problem of generating a change indimension or surface appearance caused by vapor or ironing duringsewing.

Comparative Example 1

The same wool fibers and polyester fibers were used as in Example 1, butan acrylic fiber tow having a fineness of 2.2 dtex was used in place ofthe extra-fine AC fiber tow used in Example 1. These kinds of fiberswere subjected to mix spinning at the same ratio as in Example 1 to givea two ply yarn having the same yarn count and twist configuration as inExample 1. Using this two ply yarn, weaving was performed in accordancewith Example 1 to give a fabric according to Comparative Example 1.

The fabric according to Comparative Example 1 was inferior in repulsivefeeling to the fabrics in Examples 1 and 2. In addition, the fabricaccording to Comparative Example 1 did not have the touch specific tothe 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics, the specific silky sensation, andthe non-sticky, dry, and comfortable touch. The fabric according toComparative Example 1 also did not obtain depth of color equivalent tothe depth of color specific to the 100-mass %-wool clothing fabrics. Theinventor of the present application found, from these test results, theusefulness of the present blended yarn containing the extra-fine ACfibers blended therein as acrylic fibers.

The present fabric is not only used as a material for clothes, but isalso usable as a material for high-value adding fashion using ahigh-grade clothing fabric.

1. A synthetic fiber blend fabric being a woven fabric that is made fromblended yarns each obtained by mix spinning of three or more kinds offibers including wool fibers, polyester fibers, and acrylic fibers, orbeing a woven fabric mainly consisting of the blended yarns, each of theblended yarns containing the three or more kinds of fibers blendedtherein so as to be approximately uniformly distributed at a prescribedblending ratio along a longitudinal direction of the blended yarn, andthe blended yarn having a total content of the wool fibers, thepolyester fibers, and the acrylic fibers of 90 mass % or more and 100mass % or less, and the acrylic fibers having a fineness of 0.5 dtex ormore and 1.4 dtex or less.
 2. The synthetic fiber blend fabric accordingto claim 1, wherein each of the blended yarns has a content of the woolfibers of 30 mass % or more and 70 mass % or less, a content of thepolyester fibers of 20 mass % or more and 50 mass % or less, and acontent of the acrylic fibers of 10 mass % or more and 30 mass % orless.
 3. The synthetic fiber blend fabric according to claim 1, whereineach of the blended yarns is a two ply yarn, and each of the blendedyarns has a metric count of 2/36 to 2/140.
 4. The synthetic fiber blendfabric according to claim 1, wherein each of the blended yarns is a twoply yarn, each of the blended yarns has a metric count of 2/36 to 2/140,each of the blended yarns has a first twist coefficient of 80 or moreand 120 or less, the first twist coefficient being defined by T/√N inwhich T represents a first twist number and N represents a metric count,each of the blended yarns has a final twist number of 80% or more and130% or less of the first twist number, and each of the blended yarnshas a same direction of final twists as a direction of first twists. 5.Clothes comprising a fabric, the fabric being formed of the syntheticfiber blend fabric according to claim 1, or including the syntheticfiber blend fabric according to claim 1.